A Simple Wish: Chapter 1
by ZzzSleepyDragonzzZ
Summary: Maybe the Underground is real....
1. Default Chapter Title

DISCLAIMER: Labyrinth and its characters in no way belong to me....or David Bowie for that matter...shucks ;) 

This is my attempt to get someone else into the Labyrinth to maybe see things we didn't in the movie..let me know what ya'll think

**A Simple Wish**

_Chapter 1: How You Turned My World_

    Samantha sighed heavily, slammed her calculus textbook shut, and dropped it on the edge of her desk with a jarring thud. Feeling blinded by the artificial light, she reached up to flip off the switch on her small, blue lamp. Sam relaxed slightly as the familiar, soft white light of the full moon washed over her from the window above her desk. Pushing her shoulder length, dark hair out of her eyes, Sam searched for her favorite CD, Labyrinth. She took this most treasured possession from its case and carefully place it in her player as not to scratch the mirrored surface. When the enchanting melody flowed from the dark speakers, Sam softly placed her head on her folded arms and stared wishfully at the crystal moon.
    *Why can't such wonderful worlds as this be real; why can't fantasies be real?* she thought to herself. *I'm just so tired with everything here; with my life. Sure, there are those occasional great moments, but they just don't last. Just when I think things are starting to look up, I fall right back down in a hole. Everyone is in such a hurry; do this, do that, go there....school....work....I don't think I can handle much more. No one wishes anymore; no one believes, no one dreams. Well, maybe they do, but not in the true, child-like sense. I'm not getting anywhere. I do and do and do, and where do I end up? Right back where I started. I can do many things satisfactorily but nothing really well. I don't know yet what my future holds, but it looks empty and very far away from where I'm standing now. It seems impossible to believe, but I've completely lost touch with reality.*
    *Why is it so hard to concentrate. My imagination is taking over. Reality and Fantasy fought a war in my mind. Fantasy was the victor. Not that I mind. At least it's an escape. Nothing is simple here, but hard in a way that fails to challenge my mind. I'm becoming numb...*
    Still pondering these questions, Sam sat up, opened the desk drawer on her right, and pulled out a large sized, red scrapbook, bulging with papers. Though she owned many books such as this, made to keep safe her dreams and wishes, this one was different. In this particular book could be found anything and everything Labyrinth. It contained poems, stories, thoughts, and pictures relating to this obsession. Many of these she had drawn or written herself, others had been stumbled upon in various places. She thumbed through the filled pages, stopping on a striking picture of Jareth, The Goblin King. (This was something that happened often lately. She also found herself intent upon a large poster of David Bowie which hung next to her door.) She stared intently at the photo as if memorizing it for the hundredth time.
    Those eyes, one darkness, one light. One evil and one good. Staring out from a center point, combining, becoming one. A representation of the soul. A being of kindness and cruelty. Yet, the darker side seemed to overpower the light. Her eyes shifted to his wickedly amused, yet unrevealing smile.
    "What's wrong with me?" she whispered, becoming agitated, "This isn't real. It's merely a story meant to entertain...the characters are just actors. Why does my mind refuse to acknowledge that?"
    This moment of realization did not last long, however, and Sam began to wonder again.
    "If somehow this were real, and not just fantasy, I wonder how much of it is true. What really happened in the Labyrinth? I don't suppose it would be too similar. I mean, how could anyone really, truly know? These beings from other worlds may let us see some of their world in dreams, but not every secret. But it's not real!! I'm such a fool!" she scolded herself and shut the scrapbook less than lightly.
    "I've said those words a million times and nothing has ever happened. I must be insane to keep trying," she sighed.
    In one last moment of desperation, Sam banged her fist on the desk, grabbed her head in her hands and said, teeth clenched, "How I wish the Labyrinth were real; the Goblins and all of it. I wish they would take me away, right now!"
    With eyes closed tightly, she waited silently, yet heard nothing save for the music drifting from her radio. Moments later, she rose her head and sighed, putting the book away safely in its place. As she shut the drawer roughly, since it had a tendency to stick, her pencil jar crashed to the floor, spilling countless pens and pencils onto the shaggy, tan rug.
    "Dammit," Sam cursed as she bent down to pick them up, just narrowly missing a glimpse of white that flashed past her window.


	2. Default Chapter Title

A Simple Wish 

Chapter 2: Everything I've Done, I've Done For You 

    Sam flipped on her light so she could see where the pencils had fallen. As she put the last one back into the purple jar, she started at a sudden crack of thunder.
    **It was supposed to be a sunny, clear weekend,** she thought, and then shrugged it off, **the weather men strike again.**
    She got up from her metal chair and shuffled along her rug to shut the back door as small drops of rain began to patter on the ground outside and on the roof. She stepped carefully over a half-finished jigsaw puzzle of King Arthur's Castle when the electricity snapped off. Not expecting this sudden darkness, her left foot landed in the center of the puzzle, scattering cardboard pieces all over the rug.
    "Oh no!" she growled under her breath, "What else could go wrong." Sam bent down to pick up the stray pieces that had stuck themselves like burrs to her cotton socks. The rain began to fall harder and her bedroom was lit up brightly by flashes of white light. After pushing what she could see of the puzzle into a small pile, she inched forward, hands slightly outstretched, and shoved the door closed with a bang. Wiping her hands together and feeling as though she had finally accomplished something, she quipped, "That's the most excitement I'll have all week." 
    "Oh, come now, I wouldn't be so sure about that."
    Sam's entire body tensed at the sound of a familiar voice from behind her. She had been alone in the room before the lights had gone out...right? Breathing rapidly, she moved not a muscle and in a less than convincing way told herself she was daydreaming again.
    "Well? Is this always how you greet your guests? I took time out of my busy schedule for your wishes, Samantha," the voice said in a thick British accent.
     Sam brought both hands up to her face quickly and cupped them over her mouth to hold back a scream.
    **It's him....oh Gods, it's really him...and he knows my name. This has to be a dream. It's not real. Oh, please. This goes against everything realistic.** Summoning up all the courage she had, Sam turned slowly around keeping her eyes tightly shut. When she opened them and released the breath she has been holding, it was no longer as dark as before and there he stood, The Goblin King.
    Pictures, in no way, did him justice.
    He stood there, majestic and frightening, gloved hands on his hips and the full moon blazing behind him. The storm seemed to have calmed with his arrival. Perhaps, Sam wondered, he was the storm. His black cape and stray pieces of silk fabric ruffled in the breeze, as did his wild, blondish hair. He wore a feather-like shirt, low cut to reveal a necklace with some sort of strange amulet. Tall, black boots extended over his light blue tights. Glitter flitted about the air surrounding him and the tinted blueness of his hair set off those piercing eyes of different colors. The corners of his mouth curled up in wry amusement as he watched Sam stare in disbelief. In fact, Sam had never been more afraid in her life, yet she could not help thinking how gorgeous he was.....and he looked very similar to what he was portrayed as being, yet much more striking.
    Jareth took a step toward her and crossed his arms at his chest. Raising an eyebrow slightly, he waited. Sam blushed beneath his stare and tried to think of something clever to say, feeling the need to make a good impression. 
    "You're real," she stammered, not exactly the clever quip of wit she had hoped for. Jareth laughed softly.
    "Of course I'm real. You would not have called upon me if you did not believe it so." Sam picked up a hint of sarcasm in that statement.
    "No, I'm not sure if I really believed or not. I just wanted to believe....I never thought it would come true," she admitted.
    "Yes, well, it is essentially the same idea," he stopped as Sam's expression changed and asked somewhat curiously, "is there something troubling you Samantha?"
    Sam's brow had shifted inward as that old question that she had thought of earlier popped back into her head. 
    "No, I mean yes...well...how is it that you look exactly like him," she pointed to the poster of David Bowie, "but you're not him. And how did the people here know about you to make the film?" 
    "Ahhhh," Jareth said with a smile, "curious, are we? My dear girl, everyone has a twin in another world; another realm. It just so happens that mine and his paths crossed in some way. I sent the humans of your world dreams and glimpses of the Underground in order that more would know of it. Things were....to be blunt...getting slow and my supply of goblin subjects was waning." He pulled out a crystal from his cloak and began weaving it through his fingers as he continued. Sam could not help but follow the gleam with her eyes. "And, my plan has worked. Many younger, as well as elder, siblings were sent to me, and few chose to take the chance to retrieve them from my castle. The ones who did, of course, failed. It's not very often I get someone wishing themselves into the Labyrinth. However, back to the main question. I had no intention of having my "twin" play the part. That was mere coincidence. Does that sufficiently answer your question Samantha?"
    **There is something creepy about someone constantly using your name,** Sam thought, then said aloud, "That's certainly a lot to think about, but yes, I suppose it does." 
    "Good, then we can get right to the point at hand," Jareth said as if it were a business deal. "You asked, or begged rather, to be taken away from this world and into mine. I have an obligation as King to do so for you, therefore Samantha, you belong to me according to my rules." 
    Sam's eyes shot open and she momentarily forgot her awe and fear. "What!?" she exclaimed, "but you're not supposed to be real. I didn't know!" 
    "Well, you should have considered that before then shouldn't you?" he grinned.
    "But I can't leave. I have responsibilities here...family...college...I couldn't go even if I wanted to," she stated. 
    "As you know, what's said, is said. Maybe now you realize you didn't have it so bad here," he said as he placed the crystal back beneath the folds of his garments.
    "How is it that you never came before. I've called hundreds of times. You must have heard then if you did tonight," Sam inquired. 
    Jareth's grin spread as he answered, "Yes, I seem to recall hearing you before, on many occasions in fact," he stepped closer, only inches away from her now, "but I was tied up at the time and decided to save you for another time....when you could prove beneficial to me. I've been watching you for a long while, Samantha. Your reality is slipping slowly away and I plan to erase it completely to suit my present needs." 
    Sam began to shake her head in disagreement. His voice was chilling and his vague plans for her made her hair stand on end. What could he possibly want with her? Not another goblin....he must have plenty of those by now. Maybe he was in some sort of trouble.
    "I won't go...that's not fair. You can't save those calls until you're ready. If you follow your own rules like you say you do, and they absolutely can not be broken, then you would have answered me the first time," she argued. 
    Jareth began to lose his patience with all this stalling and took Sam's chin securely in his gloved hand.
    "I," he said warningly, his eyes blazing with blue fire, "am The Goblin King. I can do as I please, when I please. I say when the rules are to be broken. I have come to you when you called and have done you a favor, whether you still want it or not. Now, you owe me and my price will be high. A word of caution: Be careful what you wish for, Samantha, you must may receive it. Now," he said more calmly, enjoying the frightened look within her dark eyes, "are you going to make this hard on yourself? Obey me Samantha, and you can have everything you want. Defy me, and discover how cruel I can become. The representation of me is nothing compared to the real thing."
    Sam was trembling beyond belief at his words and the feel of his breath and power so close to her being. For a moment however, she thought she saw in his eyes, a flash of doubt at his statement. But in her present condition, she couldn't be sure. 
    In a way, Sam really did want to see the Labyrinth and if she was forced to go anyway, why not humor him for the time being. She just had to make sure she received the same chance to come back as Sarah had. If she lost the game, the price could not be worse than her present situation. Either way, she was doomed to stay Underground. Putting on a face of bravado, which wasn't entirely false, she said to the King, "I wish to ask something of you again....and I'm willing to pay the price." 
    Jareth concealed his surprise at her request and change in demeanor. Maybe he had underestimated her. "Go on, but remember the price increases each time," he warned. 
    "I understand," Sam said, "I want a chance to win back my freedom, like Sarah was given."
    Jareth grinned again, teeth and eyes sparkling. "Yes, I thought as much. You're in luck," he said more cheerfully, his eyes still hiding something from view, "I do love a good challenge and you strike me as being an admirable adversary. I will, as you seem to be so used to, give you 13 hours to solve my Labyrinth and reach the outside...starting at my castle. Mind you," he raised his finger to her, "things are not as tame there as you may be used to seeing. And, mere words will NOT defeat me. You cannot win, but you may have a "fair" chance to try--" Sam interrupted, "You're idea of fair I suppose." 
    "Yes," he smiled and continued, "don't use what you know of a fictitious movie to guide you through. That would be your first mistake. Second, don't underestimate me. I will stop at nothing to win. I try to be reasonable, however." His eyes took on a sarcastically compassionate air. "I had so hoped you would allow me to rule you." Sam laughed quietly, which surprised herself. Was she enjoying this adventure? Well, after all, it was what she had asked for all these years. 
    "Why would you tell me these things, to be careful and so forth. It can only help me solve the Labyrinth," she asked suspiciously. 
    "Every thing I do, I do for a well thought out reason, Samantha. When someone is paranoid of their surroundings, especially when it's a new and confusing place, I gain the advantage. They miss things they may have seen before for the simple fact it was looked at too hard. Think of it as a trap set in your subconscious. You must decide, Samantha, whether to heed my advice or disregard it. You may never know my true intents." 
    Sam stood before him, trying to let all of this new information sink in. These facts had to be locked away for future use. She couldn't be sure, but Sam believed everything Jareth said was going to be important in some way. 
    "Shall we go, Samantha? I'd hate to waste anymore time with talk," The Goblin King asked.
    "Yes, I don't have much of a choice do I, since you seem to be making all those for me. Let me warn you," Sam said, suddenly feeling brave, "I won't make things easy for you. I won't obey every command you give me. After all, what have I got to lose." 
    Jareth stared into her eyes, knowing her words to be true. "That will make it all the more interesting, now won't it," he smiled graciously at her, "and when we arrive at the castle, you just may change your mind at that." He pulled the same crystal as before from his robes and tossed it in the air toward Sam. On impulse, she reached up to catch it and it popped like a bubble, spilling glitter all about her face. The last thing she remembered was falling into Jareth's strong arms and hearing his soft laughter.


	3. Default Chapter Title

A Simple Wish 

_Chapter 3: "Is That The Castle Beyond The Goblin City?" _

    Sam had awoken, reluctantly, from the best nights rest she had ever experienced.

     **Thank the Gods it was all a dream,** she thought as she rolled over on her back and opened her eyes groggily. 

     "What do you know," she said softly, "I haven't woken up yet." She sighed, "Well, I did ask for it." Sitting up, she pulled the black silk sheets tightly around her and began to survey the room. 

     It was a rather large room, not brightly lit, but the huge picture window opposite from the door allowed some muted sunlight to glare through. The scene from this window was a magnificent overhead view of the Labyrinth. It looked much like the pictures she had mulled over and fascinated at so many times.

     "Well," she said, "some things are the same...at least at on the surface." Against the wall before the "King" size bed stood a small podium. The object on this was entirely covered by a shiny, red cloth. The rest of the room contained shelves that held books, trinkets, and a closet filled with unique, eccentric-looking clothing.

     "This is definitely Jareth's room," Sam chuckled. Her attention was soon drawn back to the podium, however, and she tossed off the covers, hopped off the bed, and stood before it. 

     Making sure she was completely alone, Sam grasped the cloth with her slender fingers and pulled it from the hidden object. She was somewhat disappointed to discover it was a crystal, like the many others Jareth had lying around the room.

     "It's just like the others," she whispered, "or...maybe it's something more." She tapped the mirrored surface with her fingernail.

     Before she could examine the crystal further, Sam heard a commotion outside the door and quickly covered it up again. Then, she shuffled back to the bed and waited for whoever was outside to make their entry. When nothing happened, Sam set to straitening herself out as well as making the bed.

     "If I have to be a guest here, there's no need to be a messy one," she said.

     When her task was completed, Sam crept silently towards the wooden door and took one last look over her shoulder. **There's something strange about seeing how truly alike Jareth is to any other person, in some respects,** she thought. It seemed a very intimate and trusting gesture to put her in such a private, revealing place. Maybe it had been a lack of better judgment on his part, or perhaps, a trap. Storing away yet another bit of information, Sam wrapped her hand around the cool doorknob and turned it slowly. The door creaked loudly and she winced as two ugly goblins, dressed as guards, rushed toward her with fairly large, sharp-looking spears.

     Sam cleared her throat and smiled when they stopped before her, blocking the way out.

     "Ahem.....Hello there," she said in a friendly manner.

     "Get yourself back in there, little girly. You don't want to be startin' no trouble. Jareth isn't in the mood for it," the goblin with the over-exaggerated nose barked.

     "Yea, you heard him, get back in the room," the other with the long, pointed ears whined, shoving his sharp spear point at her.

     "Hey!" Sam yelled in surprise, "Watch where you're pointing that thing! You could hurt someone." The two creatures seemed startled by her outburst but stood their ground.

     "We just doin' our jobs, lady," Big-Nose said. Pointy-Ears nodded in agreement.

     "Well, I suggest you be more careful. I wasn't trying to escape, I just wanted to see where I was," Sam lied.

     "You be in the King's royal chambers," Big-Nose said, "and you're to stay put until Jareth says otherwise."

     "Oh," Sam said, her thoughts suddenly turning back to the crystal. "Well, if Jareth wanted to know if I was where I'm supposed to be, how could he do it without coming all the way to the room?" 

     "This girl ain't one of the brightest, is she," Big-Nose whispered in a loud voice to his partner. Then he turned to Sam again. "He'd use the crystal in the throne room to connect with the main one in his chambers by rubbing it and thinking of exactly where he wanted to see. There's one in every room of the castle and they all link back to this one. Everyone knows that, but not how to use them," he explained and they both laughed at her ignorance. Sam, having been proud to gain this knowledge so easily, laughed with them. (Or at them, rather.) Still playing upon their stupidity, Sam interrupted. 

     "Oh," she giggled in a fake manner, "I KNEW that. I just wanted to see if the King found you two trustworthy enough to tell such a BIG, important thing like that," she ended with a toothy grin.

     The two goblins smirked, if it could be called a "smirk" when it happened upon their disfigured faces.

     "Of course he trusts us," Big-Nose said proudly, "we're his best and most loyal warriors." 

     "Yes," agreed Pointy-Ears, "that be the truth. No one can beat us as a team." 

     "Hmmmm," Sam scratched her chin in thoughtful contemplation. "As a team? I would think you," she pointed at Big-Nose, "would be the more powerful of the two. I mean, he does have more muscles," she ended, turning to Pointy-Ears. Big-Nose puffed out his chest and made a coughing noise. 

     "Well, you wrong missy," Pointy-Ears argued, "I be taller and stronger than him any day. I taught him everything he knows." 

     "What?!" Big-Nose exclaimed, "that's not right. I taught you! You bunchy old scab-face!" 

     "Hey, don't call me names you wart infested stooge!" Pointy-Ears shot back.

     By now, the two were nose-to-nose and as they lunged for each other, Sam grabbed them by the hair and held them up level to her face.

     "Listen, fellas, I think this is an important thing for you to work out, so I'll just leave you guys alone. How does that sound to you?" she asked. The goblins continued to argue in mid-air and seemed to have forgotten that Sam even existed. She dropped them back down to the floor and shut the door behind her with a click. She then patted each goblin on the head and started down the long hallway.

     The halls of the castle were much like mazes themselves and were lit very dimly by torches. As the sounds of her guards' yelling faded, a new group of sounds touched her ears. Sam followed the origin of this noise the best she could manage. Not more than a few twists and turns later, Sam found herself before an archway that led to the throne room.

     **That even looks the same,** she thought to herself as she peered from around the wall of one arch.

     She watched Jareth sit down in his throne and then witnessed the event that caused her to lose complete control for the simple fact that it was the most purely hilarious, ironic thing she had ever seen.


	4. Default Chapter Title

A Simple Wish 

Chapter 4: "Well, Laugh!" 

    "Stop goofing off you incompetent fools!" Jareth yelled, clearly losing every ounce of patience he once had, "I want this place presentable before the girl wakes up! Move!" 

     A jumbled, chaotic mess of "Yes, your Majesty's" could be heard from the fifty or so goblins that were milling quickly about the room. None wanted to test Jareth's temper further. 

    Jareth turned briskly on his heels and grabbed the first goblin in his reach by the collar of his ratty shirt.

    "You," he pointed with his other hand as the creature dangled inches from the stone floor, "go and make sure the other goblins are preparing the room and the dining hall. Quick! We haven't much time!" He dropped the goblin less than lightly and as soon as his feet hit the ground, his short legs carried him swiftly from the throne room as fast as they could move.

    Jareth sat down heavily in his throne and sighed, putting a gloved hand on his forehead. Watching his goblins run amuck, making more of a mess than they were cleaning up, gave him a splitting headache. **If I must bear any more of this now, I simply will lose my mind,** he thought to himself. 

    As he rested his long leg over the side of the throne, a wet rag shot from across the room and smacked him in the side of the face. His eyes glassed over with utter rage as the soapy water trickled down his cheek.

    All movement in the room ceased. Every breath was held. Every eye protruded in shock from every face. Then, every head turned, broken out of their shock, as highly amused laughter could be heard from the entrance. Taking advantage of this distraction, the goblin responsible for the accident scrambled out of the opposite doorway. Jareth turned to see Sam standing there, hands holding her stomach, with a wide grin spread across her face.

    Most of the goblins still in the room couldn't quite hold back after hearing Sam and chuckled softly. The laughter proved to be dangerously contagious. This, of course, didn't help Jareth's temper at the moment and he eased his leg over the arm of his throne and proceeded to stand, in an agonizingly slow manner. He peeled off a single glove and began to wipe the soapy water from his face. The rag that had fell and stuck in his lap, plummeted to the floor with a loud smack. He took one booted foot and kicked it clear across the room, knocking an unfortunate goblin in the line of fire into the wall.

    Sam bent down and tapped a frightened faced goblin on the shoulder and remarked, "He isn't ranting and raving...what's wrong with this picture."

    The goblin tore his glance away from the "calm" Jareth to look at Sam. "Let me tell you.....you know when the King is extremely angry...he's too steamed to even yell. He holds it all in until he comes to the point of bursting. You wait for it little girl and see for yourself." With that, the little man-like creature ran from the room.

    Sam backed up a few steps as Jareth rose his eyes to the crowd. Apparently, his fuse was burnt to the end.

    "Out!! Out all of you! Get out of my sight you fools!" Jareth bellowed as he rose his arms and pinpointed any bodies who dared to dally around. Within seconds, not needing to be told twice, every goblin made a mad dash for the archway. Bumping into each other, stepping on anyone who got in the way, and oblivious to anything but escaping the King's wrath. Sam jumped quickly out of the arch as she saw the stampede heading her way. In no time at all, the entire room was cleared, save for Jareth and Sam. 

    Realizing her situation and having no desire to be present during this insanity, Sam turned slowly on her heels and attempted to tip-toe back down the corridor without being seen. 

    "And where do you think you're going Samantha?" Jareth purred, "I did not dismiss you from the room."

    Sam took a sharp breath and stopped in mid-step.

    "I'd advise you to follow my orders...I'm not in the best frame of mind and cannot be responsible for my actions," he said wickedly.

    Sam turned back around and stepped into the throne room, stopping a good distance before Jareth.

    "Good morning," Sam smiled, vainly trying to look calm, "I had a wonderful sleep. How was yours?"

    Jareth slanted his eyes, ignoring her remark. "What are you doing out of my chambers? I do not want you roaming the castle before I have the opportunity to aquaint you with where and where not you will be allowed to wander." 

    "I'm sorry. I didn't think it would harm anything if I left. Those guards you posted at the door didn't seem to have a problem with it either," Sam answered. 

    "Yes, I must remember to have a talk with them, won't I," Jareth growled as he began to circle Sam. Sam circled with him, not feeling completely safe with him out of her range of sight. 

    "As for you....your behavior today will not go unpunished. You are a guest here and the same rules apply to you as to everyone," Jareth said, watching her closely.

    "What are you talking about?" Sam said loudly, "I'm not the one who nailed you with the rag!"

    "You, Samantha, did something far worse. You wavered the discipline I, as King, have worked so hard to achieve in my subjects. You not only defied my respect, but you made a bad example for the rest," he scolded. 

    Sam, feeling as though she were once again a child being scolded by her parents, could not stop the grin that tugged at the corners of her mouth and the giggle forming in her throat. She tried, honest to Gods she tried, to hold back to the point where her eyes began to water.

    Jareth looked at her, his anger growing more visible. "You still dare to make light of what has occurred here? After my warnings?" 

    "I'm so sorry," Sam tried to say between gasps and hiccups, "but you don't know how funny it was...if you...had only seen...your face. Not to mention the goblins....," she burst into full blown laughter now, "I'll never forget it!!"

    "And I suggest that you don't...at least not the lesson it's going to teach you. You now have only nine hours to solve my Labyrinth," he scowled, stopping before her once again, wanting full view of Sam's expression and reaction to his punishment. 

    Sam, having nearly spent her fit of laughter, realized that Jareth wanted her to argue and decided against it. His eyes encouraged her to defy him once again. Perhaps if she turned the tables on him and pretended to know more than she in fact did, she may gain some control over her predicament. Two could play at this game. She had no idea what thoughts and schemes muddled in his mind, and, to some degree, he could not know everything she thought either.

    Wiping her eyes, Sam said calmly, almost patronizingly, "If that's the price I have to pay for such a great show as I just saw, then so be it," she smirked and added, "I have no clue as to what your plans are for me, but then again, you've no clue what I've learned in my short time here. I won't ever give up. And, just for the record, I find it hard to believe you're as horrible as you present yourself to be. Your eyes lie."

    Jareth's surprise at her cander could not be hidden this time and his gaze on her wavered. **Amazing!** Jareth thought to himself. **She's using my own mind games against me. Sensational!** A small grin crept onto his mouth. **This is proving to be more of a challenge that I had hoped for...and things have hardly begun. I so do enjoy that defiant gleam in her eyes..that smile..Wait!! That's not relevent. I must bury these idle feelings deeper. Apparently, she's seen a weakness somewhere...**

    "Clever girl," Jareth grinned at her, "You have applied well the concept that nothing is what it seems here. Let us discuss further the rules to be set and your delusions of my character over dinner. I will show you to your room and where you can change your clothes if you so desire."

    "Sounds good to me," Sam said lightly, having not eaten since the morning before. "When do I get my chance to win my freedom though?" she asked. It seemed to her that he was stalling and she was somewhat anxious to prove his theory of her failing wrong.

    "That is one of the many points we will discuss later," he answered holding out his arm. "Shall we then?"

    Sam, a little shocked at his gesture but in no way disregarding it as a trick, lightly took his arm and allowed him to lead her to the room he had fixed for her stay, however long that would prove to be.    


End file.
